State of Digital Switchover in EMEA some key lessons from Europe to consider keenly Bogota DSA Summit 27 th April 2016 Prof. H Sama Nwana, PhD, MBA Executive Director (Ex-Group Director, Spectrum, Ofcom UK)
Outline 1.Digital Switchover Progress in Europe & Africa 2.The Challenges & Key Lessons for Digital Switchover from Europe
ASO - EUROPE Country Launch date Compression format Completion of ASO UK 1998 MPEG-2 Completed Sweden 1999 MPEG-2 Spain 2000/ 2005 MPEG-2 Completed Finland 2001 MPEG-2 Completed Switzerland 2001 MPEG-2 Completed Germany 2002 MPEG-2 Completed Belgium (Flemish) 2002 MPEG-2 Completed NL 2003 MPEG-2 Completed Italy 2004 MPEG-2 Completed France 2005 MPEG-2/MPEG-4 AVC Completed Czech Republic 2005 MPEG-2 Completed Denmark 2006 MPEG-2/MPEG-4 AVC Completed Estonia 2006 MPEG-4 AVC Completed Austria 2006 MPEG-2 Completed Slovenia 2006 MPEG-4 AVC Completed Norway 2007 MPEG-4 AVC Completed Lithuania 2008 MPEG-4 AVC Completed Hungary 2008 MPEG-4 AVC 2014 Ukraine 2008 MPEG-4 AVC 2014 Latvia 2009 MPEG-4 AVC Completed Portugal 2009 MPEG-4 AVC Completed Croatia 2009 MPEG-2 Completed Poland 2009 MPEG-4 AVC 2013 Slovakia 2009 MPEG-2 Completed Ireland 2011 MPEG-4 AVC Completed Russia 2012 MPEG-4 AVC 2015
Transition Periods
African Countries meeting ITU deadline The Deadline: End of June 2015 Countries: Algeria, Kenya (hard-stop), Mauritius and T anzania (hard-stop) and these countries may provide valuable lessons for others. Consequences?
African Countries NOT having met deadline (2015) though many were 2020 VHF countries 50 out of 54 countries: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo-Brazzaville, Cote d Ivoire, Djibouti, DRC, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe..
Outline 1.Digital Switchover Progress in Europe & Africa 2.The Challenges & Key Lessons for Digital Switchover from Europe
ASO - No easy process! Revising existing policies and regulations and Taking key policy and regulatory decisions Allocating required budget Rolling out the network Producing content Educating the public The business case for it all may NOT exist
Digital switchover must be more than just technocracy.. The analogue to digital switchover of TV should not just be an exercise in technocracy it should and must be exploited as an opportunity to light the burners of the new multi-channel, multi-media, more interactive and more Social Media Sector. Nwana (2014), Telecommunications, Media & technology for Developing Economies, London: Gigalen Press, Chapter 9
Broadcasting/Media challenges are many and complex Challenges include The Future of Government-owned/State-owned broadcasters challenge The Re-inventing public service broadcasting challenge The Public service news challenge The broadcasting media sector regulatory challenge The Financing/funding challenge (SABC 2011 audited 76% advertising/sponsorship; license fees 17%; Government grant 3%) The newspapers/press challenge The widespread availability (reach) challenge The affordability challenge The quality challenge The political challenge The institutional challenge The skills/knowledge/expertise challenge The technology challenge
DSO is one of several ongoing and concurrent projects coordinate them please BUT the reality is.. Broadcasting certainly not valued by consumers as much as mobile No form of TV news in the UK currently pays its own way little chance in Africa Much of the value in broadcasting is in the broader social value (BSV) not private value. BSV covers: access and inclusion; more educated and informed citizenry; cultural understanding; belonging to a community; promoting democracy - but who wants to pay for these niceties?
Moribund Media sector in South Americas & the Caribbean But so much potential Cities such as Rio, Bogota, Lima, Kingston (Jamaica) etc. are all potential TMT Media hubs in South Americas and the Caribbean of tomorrow Nollywood is already a $500M a year industry TMT in London employs 440,000 or 1 in 10 jobs in the UK s capital: 40K Telecoms; 180K Technology; 210K Media That is, 4 to 5 times as many Media jobs as telecoms What are these jobs? Broadcast engineers, Broadcast journalists, Film/video editors, Games developers, Graphics designers, Lighting technicians: broadcasting/film/video, Location managers, Production designers, theatre/television/films, Programme researchers: broadcasting/film/videos, Radio broadcast assistants, Radio producers, Runners: broadcasting/film/video, Sound technicians: broadcasting/film/video, Television camera operators: Television/broadcasting/film/video producer, Television floor managers, Television production assistants, Website (interactive) developers
Key Messages Digital SwitchOver (DSO) in South Americas & the Caribbean MUST be more than just technocracy and broadcasting DSO is one of several important concurrent projects with major and important outcomes for Region 2 coordinate them Do NOT underestimate the challenges of the broadcasting/media landscape in the South Americas and Caribbean Looking TMT-sector wide is necessary for the Americas: BSV vs. private value. Proceeds too from broadcasting spectrum may be part of the solution - Complex